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Ogres
Ogres are a race that inhabit the Old World, but are not considered civilisaed enough to share the status of being one of the Four Races. Despite this, many are civilised enough to live in Human cities, and, especially during war, they are very much welcomed as Mercenaries. A full-grown Ogre bull (male) stands from 10 to 11 foot tall and is almost half that wide at the gut, with cows (females) only a little smaller. Their massively built bodies are topped by an almost neckless head, with powerful arms, as thick as a Human's chest, hanging at each side. Needless to say, Ogres are heavy, typically weighing in at anything from 800 to 1000lbs, with older, stronger, Ogres often weighing far more. However, only a fool would mistake this mass for fat, for underneath an Ogre's skin lies an extensive lattice-work of muscle, and nowhere is this more the case than in an Ogre's ''' most important feature (as far as the '''Ogre is concerned): his gut. The gut of an Ogre is of utmost importance for social, spiritual, and physical reasons. Many of an Ogre's vital organs are held in the gut, unlike most other humanoids, and are protected by a thick interlocking skein of musculature instead of the normal ribcage. These incredibly powerful muscles can grind and churn with terrific force, allowing the Ogre to digest almost anything he cares to toss into his cavernous maw. Large guts are a sign of status to an Ogre, for he must have caught, and eaten, a lot of prey to get very big. Ogre skin is normally sallow, ranging from sickly yellow to dark greenish-grey, and is as tough as a cured-leather breastplate. Ogre head-hair is thick, dark and lank, although bulls often go bald past their 30th year. Equally, facial hair is often prized by bulls, with many going to great extremes to cultivate the greasy stuff, some growing long beards, others preferring moustaches or goatees. Many believe an Ogre's love for his beard stems from his desire to trap escaped morsels of food for later, which, for many, is indeed the case. Ogres are well known for their tendency to travel, and can be found across the four corners of the world fighting in Mercenary groups of a score to a few hundred or more. Contrary to most popular opinions of the race, Ogres generally mix well with most societies they encounter, assimilating local customs and traditions with an ease likely spawned from a lack of imagination or independent thought. Furthermore, they have a strange commraderie with Halflings, a phenomenon that has caused much speculation within academic circles. History Many thousands of years ago, the Ogres lived in steppelands far to the East of the Old World. They were a simple people that spent most of their time trading and warring. Their neighbours, Imperial Cathay, saw the benefits of working with them, keen to use their prodigious strength. Soon, the Ogres were being recruited into the Cathayan armies, greatly bolstering the celestial forces. With Cathayan influence, the Ogres prospered, and soon they were powerful enough that they made open raids against their Cathayan allies. The Celestial Dragon Emperor was not pleased, and some believe that the devastating event that followed occurred at his command. Whatever the truth, it changed the Ogre race forever. High above the Ogre steppes, a malign star winked into existence. Every night its sickly light grew brighter, until eventually, many weeks later, its crackling miasma of green light outshone both moons. The Ogres could only look to the sky in fear and wonder, the simple creatures utterly unaware of their impending doom. Eventually the Warpstone comet struck, instantly incinerating more than two-thirds of the race, burrowing itself deep into the earth, sending shockwaves around the world. The sea-sized crater it created would eventually be worshipped as the Great Maw, the Devourer of All Things, the Ogre's chief diety. The devastation it brought destroyed the green lands of the Ogres, burning and twisting them, leaving nothing but a barren wasteland, where the fight for survival drove the Ogres to cannibalism and worse. Today, the Ogre Kingdoms to the East are a barbaric conglomerate of tyrannical, greedy kings that rule by the right of might. After the arrival of their God, Ogres were inexplicably filled with many powerful hungers, one of which was an undeniable appetite for travel. Thus, Ogres can now be found all over the world, including The Empire and Kislev, selling their impressive skills to the highest bidder before moving on. Some, however, choose to settle in foreign lands, and Imperial Ogres are one such example of this. Roleplaying an Ogre Ogres are loud, greedy, boastful, enthusiastic, quick to anger, and belligerent. They are also very simple, completely failing to understand even the most elementary of abstract concepts. So music, art, imagination, creativity, and a host of other enlightened subjects mean absolutely nothing to an Ogre. It is best to state things very directly to them, because any subtlety or metaphor will just confuse, which in turn will anger. However, Ogres do appreciate a good bellow, especially if followed by, or involving, a feast. Nothing fills an Ogre with more pride than the size of his gut, which he will often pat and flex, creating an almost deafening mixture of gurgling and cracking. It is possible to play as an Ogre character, but doing so is quite difficult, due to their alien nature, and the imbalance their physique causes in combative matters. However, if you can convince your GM to allow you to create an Ogre character, then they are a powerful ally to any group. Rules for the creation of Ogre PCs can be found in Imperial Ogres, a fan-made unofficial supplement for WFRP. Category:Races Category:META